


Assimilation

by elem (elem44)



Category: Star Trek: Voyager
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-29
Updated: 2017-04-29
Packaged: 2018-10-25 06:06:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,361
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10758270
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elem44/pseuds/elem
Summary: Back on Earth for 4 months. Admiral Janeway has a visit from Seven of Nine with some disturbing news.





	Assimilation

Admiral Kathryn Janeway was busily working at her desk, the glow of the computer monitor highlighting her frown of concentration. Fallout from the Shinzon affair had caused major diplomatic problems on several Federation worlds and as Starfleet liaison, she had been at the forefront of dealing with the repercussions. The talks had been delicate and complex but nothing she couldn’t handle.

Since her return from the Delta Quadrant, she’d found her work with the Admiralty surprisingly exciting and satisfying. She’d initially been concerned that after attaining her goal and bringing Voyager home that nothing would present as challenging enough to compare. But she’d been wrong. She was pleased at how quickly she’d fallen back into her life and her new position within the upper echelons of Starfleet offered perks and benefits that she would never have enjoyed as a captain.

The only major drawback was that she missed her old crew but as consolation she saw many of them around Headquarters and had made it a rule that any of  them were welcome to visit at anytime. Her door was always open and not a day went by that someone didn’t drop in to say hello or to fill her in on news of more distant colleagues.

Samantha Wildman had taken up the position as her aide so Kathryn was able to see Naomi regularly.

Tom and B’Elanna had become close friends and Miral loved her Auntie Kathryn.

Harry had been promoted to Lieutenant Commander and assigned as First Officer to the Science vessel Archimedes.  He was very happy with his new commission and she was so proud of him. The ship’s captain, Bob Healy, was an old friend and she’d put in many a good word for Harry with his new commanding officer.

All of her crew, Starfleet and Maquis, had been offered positions in Starfleet on their return. Commissions had been upheld and many of the crew had stayed on, happy to further their careers. Ken Dalby and Mike Ayala had started officer training and gentle Gerron had begun his medical training here at Starfleet Medical.

The only people she hadn’t heard from were Chakotay and Seven. This saddened her.  Of all her crew, she was closest to these two, and although she had trouble understanding the connection between them, she tried to be happy for them. She found it difficult though. Their relationship seemed so incongruous; they had so little in common. Chakotay was a deeply spiritual man whose emotions were complex and profound, and Seven, in contrast, was so analytical and imperturbable. They seemed very mismatched, but perhaps they gave each other what was needed.  The adage was that opposites attract, and she couldn’t think of two more different people.

When she thought about it, her relationship with her First Officer had been a strangely complex one but ultimately unfulfilling. In the first few years of their journey, she thought they’d established a connection that was deep and mutual.  They seemed to know each others thoughts and were uncannily attuned to each others feelings. It was a bond that was almost like a marriage and it had been integral to the success of the melding of the two crews and the efficient running of the ship. But somehow that affinity had faded and by the end of their time in the Delta Quadrant they barely spent any time together at all.

She’d tried to analyse the reasons behind the demise of their relationship.  Initially she thought it was her fault, but when she looked back and examined their interactions, it was Chakotay who had pulled away, not her. She was the one who put the effort into maintaining their friendship with weekly dinners in her quarters and invitations to the holodeck; Chakotay had become oddly non-committal.

Their estrangement had occurred so gradually that it wasn’t until after the end of her debriefings, when she had time to reflect, that she could even pinpoint when he began to change.  It was the argument over the Borg.  He’d never been the same with her after that.  There was a degree of formality that he brought into their relationship that hadn’t been there before.

She regretted now that she hadn’t been more aware of it at the time, but her attention had been diverted by Seven of Nine and the young woman’s struggle to embrace her humanity.  Besides, it really didn’t matter anymore the how or the why. Chakotay had made his choice and that was that – except that she missed him.

Kathryn took a deep breath and put aside the PADD she was studying. It was getting late and she was meeting Tom and B’Elanna for dinner, and if she didn’t leave soon, she’d be late.  She closed down her computer and tidied her desk.

Reaching over, she picked up the photo of the senior staff from the corner of her desk and studied the smiling faces. It seemed like a lifetime ago. She sighed, placing it back on her desk before grabbing her briefcase and heading for the door.

Just as she was ordering the computer to turn off the lights, her door chimed.  Damn!  She checked the time.  She only had a half hour before she was due at the Paris’s.  Maybe she could get whoever it was to come back tomorrow.

She called for them to enter; then looked up, dumbfounded.  It was Seven.

“Seven, good heavens, how are you?  It’s so good to see you.  Come in, come in.” Kathryn stepped aside and ushered the tall blonde into her office and thought how strange it was that she’d been thinking of her just moments before.

Seven stood rigidly in front of Kathryn’s desk.  She seemed oddly uncomfortable and Kathryn tried to put her at ease.  “Would you like a drink, Seven. I could use a coffee. Will you join me?”

Seven maintained her rigid stance before looking at Kathryn coldly.  “No, thank you, Captain.  I will not be here for long.  I have some information impart before I leave for Vulcan on the evening transport.”

Kathryn’s insides clenched at the thought of Chakotay moving away from Earth.  She hadn’t realised how reassured she felt just knowing he was close by.  Frowning, she decided she would analyse this reaction later; first, she had to deal with Seven.

“Fine, but I think I’m going to need one.”  She made her way to the replicator and ordered a double strength espresso.  She had a feeling she was going to need it.  Sitting on the edge of her desk she took a sip and steeled herself.  “What is it you want to tell me, Seven?”

She held Kathryn’s gaze before she spoke in her frigid monotone. “I have terminated my relationship with the Commander.  I find I am not comfortable in an intimate relationship. His emotions are irrational and demanding. When he melded with me four years ago when disconnecting me from the hive mind, I thought that he would make an acceptable bond mate.  Refashioning his emotional responses to make him more amenable to my advances – should I decide to pursue him – was a simple task and when I decided to take that step several weeks before our return, I was unprepared for the demands of a committed relationship.”

Kathryn was stunned beyond belief but Seven continued , oblivious to her former captain’s dismay.

“I prefer to be alone.  I have informed the Commander and unblocked the emotional pathways that I put in place.  I wished to inform you that he is yours again.  I have no further use for him.”

Kathryn was beyond words. She couldn’t even begin to absorb the hideousness of what Seven had done.

Giving her former captain a brisk nod, Seven handed Kathryn a PADD.  “I must leave; my transport departs in an hour.  This is where the Commander is living.  He was somewhat disconcerted when I left him.  You may want to see him.”

She gave Kathryn another brusque nod, then turned and left without a backward glance.

Kathryn  slowly pivoted to her feet and stared at the door as it closed behind her.

Suddenly her console beeped, signalling an incoming call. She jumped and spilled some of her cooling coffee.  “Shit.”  Brushing at her pants, she swung her console around and hit the call button.

B’Elanna’s face appeared.  “Well that’s just typical.  I knew you’d still be at work.  You’re late, Kathryn.  Should I send Tom over to pick you up?”

Kathryn was still reeling from Seven’s revelations and couldn’t quite get her head around this conversation. “What?  I, ummm….. oh, B’Elanna, tonight um….I…  Seven was just here and umm….” Kathryn was at a loss.  She couldn’t string three coherent words together.

“Kathryn, are you alright?  Kahless, I’m sending Tom over now.”  B’Elanna looked away from the screen and yelled.   _“Tom, go and get Kathryn straight away.  Seven’s been there and now she’s not making any sense.”_ She looked back at her gibbering friend.  “Kathryn, stay put.  Tom will be there in a few minutes.”  Before Kathryn could say another word, the screen went blank.

Kathryn slowly turned towards the door again, her mind a whirl.

What to do, what to do?

Her first thought was Chakotay. What if he was injured from his disassimilation?  What if the nanoprobes had done permanent damage? He could be dying while she was standing here. God, what a nightmare. She jagged to her feet, trying to think what to do first. Her head was reeling, her thoughts darting all over the place.

She had to calm down and get her thoughts in order.  She took some deep calming breaths and tried to think the situation through logically.  It was a valiant effort, but all she could think to do was to get to Chakotay.  She had to see him and right this minute.  She remembered the PADD and activating it, took note of the address.

Just then her door burst open and Tom came charging in.  “Kathryn, are you okay?  She didn’t hurt you did she?”  He grabbed her by the shoulders and looked her up and down, checking her over.  “What the hell was she doing here? Do we need to call security?”

“No, no, she didn’t hurt me.  I’m fine.  She um…came to tell me something and she’s gone now.  Gone to Vulcan.”  She was still having a few processing problems.

Tom, seeing that she still wasn’t quite herself , led her to her couch and sat her down.

He ordered a triple brandy from the replicator and placed it in her hand.  “Drink this, Kathryn, and then tell me what happened.  It must have been something;  I’ve never seen you so rattled.”

She took a few large sips of the liquor and surprisingly, it helped to clear her head.  Again the console beeped.

Tom made his way to the desk.  “It’s probably B’Elanna wondering if you’re all right.”  Sure enough, Kathryn heard B’Elanna’s agitated voice asking what was going on. Tom reassured her that Kathryn was in no danger and after several descriptive Klingon expletives, she signed off.

Kathryn was feeling a bit closer to normal now and was ready to tell Tom what had happened.  She took the last hearty swig of her drink and put down the glass.  She repeated almost verbatim what Seven had told her, and by the look on Tom’s face, he was equally horrified by the former drone’s actions.

“She did _what_ to Chakotay’s brain?!  No wonder we could never get you two together.  We were working against the Borg Collective.  Fucking hell.” Tom got up and paced across her office.  “Where is he?  We need to go and check on him.  Who knows what damage she may have done.  Goddamn, she’s a cold bitch. B’Elanna was right.  We never should’ve trusted her.”

Kathryn was about to defend Seven when she realised Tom was right. What Seven had done was deplorable. Her habit of looking out for the young woman had become an automatic response, but no more.   Poor Chakotay.  He’d been manipulated by women more times than she could count and he really didn’t deserve it.

Fortified by alcohol,Kathryn jumped to her feet. “The address is here, Tom.  Will you come with me and make sure he’s all right? Seven said he was ‘disconcerted’ but there’s no telling what damage she might have done. We can call the Doctor from there if we need to but in there’s a med kit in my desk, second drawer.  We should take it.”

Tom grabbed the kit and they left her office for the transport platform at the end of the hall.  Keying in the co-ordinates, they materialised on the landing of his house, in a suburban street in outer San Francisco.

They quickly made their way to the door and rang the chime. They heard the shuffle of feet and the door opened to a very dishevelled looking Chakotay standing in the dim light of the entranceway.  He obviously hadn’t been expecting company and the shock showed on his face.

“Kathryn?!  Tom?!  What the…how…what are you doing here?”

Kathryn opened her mouth to say something but was struck dumb so thankfully Tom took the initiative.

“We came to see if you were all right.  Kathryn had a visit from Seven this evening and she told her what she’d done.  Kathryn was worried and I came along just in case.”  He thought that about covered it, although the whole situation was so bizarre that he wasn’t sure he made any more sense than Kathryn had earlier.

Kathryn couldn’t take her eyes off Chakotay.  He looked terrible.  Wonderful, but terrible.  She hadn’t realised until she laid eyes on him how much she’d missed him and with the realisation came a sudden overwhelming desire to cry.   What the hell was wrong with her?  This was ridiculous.

She had to say something.  “Are you feeling all right, Commander?”   _Damn!_ What the hell was that?  ‘ _Commander’?_ She saw Tom glance at her out of the corner of her eye. She really wasn’t herself.  Try again, Kathryn.  “May we come in, Chakotay?  I want to be sure you’re all right.”

He was looking at her strangely and it took a long moment before he shook himself and came back to the present.  “Huh… oh yeah…sure, come in.  I’m sorry.  I wasn’t really expecting anyone.”  He stood to the side and ushered them into the hall.  “The living room’s in there.”  He pointed to a doorway on their left. “I’ll be with you in a minute.”

Tom and Kathryn made their way into the darkened room.

Tom called into the gloom, “Computer lights.”

Kathryn squinted in the bright light and frowned at Tom.

“Sorry, but I couldn’t see a thing. Computer dim lights 50%.”

They stood in the centre of the room not quite sure what to do with themselves until they heard Chakotay enter the room and turned towards him.

He looked a little better. “Would either of you like something to drink?”

Kathryn looked closer and realised that he must have washed his face and combed his hair.  He still looked pretty awful though.

He was waiting for them to respond and Tom looked at Kathryn as she shook her head.

Tom looked back at Chakotay. “Ah no, thanks, Chief.  We’re fine.”  He looked around, trying not to appear too awkward.   “Nice place you have here.  Have you been here long?”

Kathryn was looking at Tom as if he were insane.  The pilot just shrugged his shoulders and looked pointedly at her as if to say, _‘well you think of something better.’_

She looked at Chakotay and tried to smile.  She had a feeling it probably looked more like a grimace.  “Chakotay, how are you feeling?  Seven told me what she did to you in the meld all those years ago.  Did she explain it to you too?”  He kept staring at her.  She was worried that perhaps he had some sort of brain damage.  Maybe they should contact the Doctor; this might be more serious than they thought. He seemed disorientated.

He blinked again and came back into himself.  “Um… yes, yes, she explained.  I must admit after the first few sentences I was so shocked that I wasn’t really listening, but I got the gist of what she was saying.”  He ran his hand through his hair.  He was becoming more and more agitated as he continued.

“When I melded with her to separate her from the hive, she assimilated parts of my brain so that I’d fall in love with her if she wanted me to.  Which she did.  Then she decided that she was sick of me after, what is it, four months together, so she ‘unassimilated’ me and took off to Vulcan to become the High Priestess of Frigid Bitches.  Tell me, have I got it right?”

Tom gave a half smile/grimace and nodded slightly.  “You seem to pretty much have the general idea.”  Tom put the med kit on the table and opened it.  Grabbing a medical tricorder, he waved it at Chakotay.  “Is it okay with you if I check you over?  Kathryn insisted that I bring it with me.  She was worried about you.”

Chakotay gave a brisk nod but kept his eyes on Kathryn.

She was feeling a little uncomfortable under his intense gaze and began looking around the room, feigning interest in pictures and rugs – anything to avoid his stare.

Tom passed the scanner over Chakotay several times, then snapped it shut.  “Well, everything seems to be in order.  Your blood pressure is slightly elevated and so is your pulse rate, but that’s hardly surprising, considering what’s happened.  Um…”  He looked back and forth between his two former commanding officers. He’d never seen two people more ill at ease. It was time to leave them alone and see what eventuated. Tom put the medical tricorder back in the case and breezily asked,  “Chakotay, can I use your comm? B’Elanna will be worried sick by now, and if I don’t call soon, she’ll send the cavalry for us.”

Without taking his eyes off Kathryn, Chakotay pointed to a door on the other side of the room.  “It’s through there in the study.”

Tom could feel the increasing tension in the room.  It was definitely time to make himself scarce.

Kathryn jumped a little at the sound of the study door closing. Chakotay was still staring at her and she was unaccountably nervous.  His eyes were burning into her. After taking a steadying breath, she turned back towards him and was pinned by his look.  She felt herself falling into his eyes. Those wonderfully familiar warm brown pools of  compassion and understanding. This was what had been missing all these years and Seven had been responsible.  It took her breath away. She was beginning to feel a little light headed.  Maybe it was the brandy, but she didn’t think so and felt behind her for a chair or something to hold on to.  In truth, she felt a little foolish.  Starfleet Admirals didn’t swoon.  Only addle-headed debutantes in adolescent holonovels did that, but if she didn’t find something to support her soon, she was going down.

The mode of support came in the shape of two strong arms attached to the beloved body of her former First Officer.  It was lucky he had hold of her, because the minute he touched her, her legs went from under her and she let out an embarrassingly girlish cry. She held on tight and so did he.  It was wonderful, so right, so peaceful, so warm, so perfect and so arousing.  Good heavens.  Where did that come from?

“Oh God, Chakotay.”  She was trembling.

“Kathryn, can you forgive me?  I’m so sorry.”

She looked up at him, puzzled. “Chakotay, you’ve nothing to apologise for.  She meddled with your brain for heaven’s sake.  You weren’t responsible.”

“But I should’ve realised something was wrong.  I loved you so much and then, nothing. I should’ve known.”

“How were we to know?  We were so busy fighting the Borg and Hirogen and God knows who else. We hardly had time to think of anything beyond survival, let alone things like that.  I just thought I’d pushed you away too many times and that you didn’t care anymore.”  Her voice hitched, and she tried desperately to get a handle on her emotions. She wasn’t doing a very good job of it though.

“Kathryn, I love you.  I can’t wait another minute to tell you.  I love you and always have and I want to kill her.  Preferably with my bare hands.  Spirits, what I wouldn’t give to get my hands on her right now.”

Kathryn leaned back in his arms a little and gave him a lopsided smile, as her voice dropped an octave.  “You have your hands on me, Commander.  Do you have any thoughts as to what you’d like to do to me _?”   No more brandy for you, Kathryn_ , she thought to herself. From debutante to brazen hussy in five minutes.  What else was in store for them tonight? An evil voice started listing things off in her head, starting with getting him naked.

Heat rose up her neck, into her cheeks and she turned her head away slightly.  She had no idea what had gotten into her.  She’d never behaved like this, even when she was a hormone laden teen.  But my Lord, she wanted him badly.

“Kathryn, did you just say what I think you said?”  He was looking at her with a big gorgeous dimpled smile.  His eyes were full of loving amusement.  He put a finger under her chin and turned her face back towards him.  She looked up at him, and her face broke into a wide happy grin.

“If you’re asking if I want you, then the answer is yes.”

He looked at her and laughed a joyful guffaw.

He couldn’t believe it.  After all this time, it was all still there. The love and the yearning. He was light headed with joy.  Either that or he did have brain damage but just at the moment he didn’t care.  He had Kathryn in his arms and she wanted him – it couldn’t get any better than this. He looked down at her and the blissful look on her face. It was something he’d dreamed of so often in the early years together but never thought he would see.

Stroking his fingers across her cheek, he teased, “Who are you, and what have you done with the real Kathryn?”

“This is the real Kathryn.  And this is what the real Kathryn has wanted to do for years.” She reached up behind his head and pulled his face down to hers. She licked his lips and pressed her open mouth to his.  Their tongues met and mingled and Kathryn let out a groan. Her body melted into his as she tilted her head back as his lips moved down her throat.  She was making small whimpering noises as her arousal spiralled almost out of control.  She had wanted this – wanted him – for so long and she’d fooled herself into believing she could live without him.  Well, no more.  She was his, always had been, and boy was she going to get seriously naked with him and soon.

They both had completely forgotten about Tom.

However, he was savvy enough to have recognised the sexual tension in the room and after finishing his call to B’Elanna, he opened the door just a crack to check what was happening in the room.  He wasn’t disappointed.  He just wished he was still running the betting pool.

Watching them and the sounds they were making, he figured he better get out of there quick smart.  These folks were like family, but it was a bit like watching your parents and there were some things that just weren’t right to share and this was one of them.  He closed the door again, left a note on the console and climbed out the window into the night.  There was a transport station a couple of blocks down the road and he figured he would be home before they even got there clothes off. Now there was a picture he had to get out of his head and quickly. B’Elanna naked, now that was better.  He moved a little faster towards the station.

Back in Chakotay’s living room, things were moving along nicely. Chakotay had his hands under Kathryn’s buttocks and had lifted her onto his thigh. He was running his hands up the inside of her leg and he could feel the heat from her centre.

She was grinding herself down on his leg trying to ease the ache but becoming more liquid as she did so.  She was pulling open his shirt and kissing his chest, licking and biting at his nipples.  He leant her back a little and pulled her uniform top open and grabbed one of her breasts.  He couldn’t believe this was happening.

“Kathryn, let’s go to the bedroom.”  She looked up at him with desire glazed eyes and a slight frown.

“Did she sleep there?”  He understood what she was saying.

“Yes, she did.”

“Then let’s stay here.”  She stepped back from him and began to remove her clothes.  This felt so right and she felt no shyness or embarrassment.  Her body was not as pert and young as Seven’s, but she knew he loved her and would see past her imperfections. Maybe it was the brandy but to be honest, she didn’t really care.  She’d wanted this for so long that his reaction to her body really didn’t rate as a thought. Their relationship was beyond that.  But my God, she wanted to see him naked.

“Get those clothes off, Commander, and that’s an order.”  There was no time for dilly dallying at this point.  She wanted him naked.  Now!

They were both laughing from joy and relief.  Theirs had been the longest and strangest courtship in history and she wasn’t about to let anything get in the way of what they both wanted.

She dragged some cushions onto the floor as a makeshift bed and lay down waiting for him to finish undressing.  When he removed his boxers, she knelt in front of him and closely inspected his erection.  She was looking but not touching.  He was magnificent, large and turgid with heavy balls hanging behind.  She could feel the heat radiating from him.

“Spirits, Kathryn, don’t just sit there.”

“Patience, Chakotay, patience.  We’re just getting acquainted.”  She touched the swollen head with her finger tip, taking a drop of precum.  She stuck out the tip of her tongue and licked it off her finger.  He groaned.  She then ran her fingernail down the underside of his penis and watched it jerk and his scrotum tighten.

“Kathryn,” came the warning groan.

She looked up at him and smiled, then she leant forward and enveloped almost half his erection in her mouth, holding the lower shaft with her hand.  She bobbed her head up and down, then swirled her tongue around the head.  He grabbed her head gently as she licked and sucked.  He was in heaven.

He suddenly pulled her head back.  He was close and didn’t want to come in her mouth the first time.  Besides he had some work to do for her to catch up.

Kneeling down, he pushed her back down onto the cushions and placed an extra one under her hips before he bent over and kissed her lips.

His tongue was punishing, and he took her breath away.  He kissed his way to behind her ear and found the spot that made her squirm deliciously.  Kissing his way down her throat, licking and sucking as he went, he laved between her breasts and nuzzled and nipped his way around each breast, not touching her nipples. They were erect and hard and begging to be suckled.  She tried moving so he would take one in his mouth, but he wasn’t going to be hurried. He mumbled, smiling against her breast.

“Remember, Kathryn.  Patience is a virtue.”

“God, Chakotay, just get on with it.” She was squirming and writhing under his ministrations.  She cupped her groin.  It was almost too much.  He took her hand and licked the palm, getting his first taste of her.

“Uh uh, Kathryn.  You wait your turn.”  She groaned.  She was so ready but he was still slowly meandering his way down her body.

He sucked one nipple then the other, and blew air across the damp flesh and watched them pucker further.  He nipped at them and squeezed them between his finger and thumb.

Her hips lifted off the ground; she wanted him so badly.

He licked his way to her navel, dipped his tongue in and laved all around it.  He could smell her arousal and could see her juices glistening in her pubic hair.  Time for the final assault.  He bent her knees up and pulled her legs apart. She was wet and swollen and teetering on the brink.  He knelt between her legs and ran his fingers through her mound, just lightly skimming over her clitoris.  She pushed her hips towards him again and let out a cry.  He bent down and dragged his tongue from bottom to top in a broad slow stroke.  Her vagina started to pulse and she was pushing herself into his face.  He plunged his tongue in and out of her opening.

She cried out, “God, Chakotay, harder, more, oh God…”  He pumped two fingers into her vagina and latched on to her bundle of nerves at the same time, sucking hard.  She went into orbit. Her body arched up off the floor and she let out a scream, followed by small grunts with each contraction.  Chakotay gently licked her folds as she came down.  Finally she lifted her head up and smiled down at him.

“Well done, Commander.  I’ll have to place a commendation in your file.”

He chuckled. “What would it be under?  ‘Keeping your Admiral happy’ huh?”  He lay on top of her and kissed her deeply.

He was still painfully aroused and his penis was rubbing along her belly.  She grabbed his buttocks and moved up a little so he was nestled against her moist folds. The stimulation was almost too much, and she was building again.  He moved back and placed his throbbing head at her opening. He looked down into her eyes.  She looked up at him.

“I love you Chakotay.  Pleeeeeease…”  He plunged into her before she could finish speaking.  She was so full and he felt wonderful.  The heat of him, the hardness and the smoothness. She tilted her pelvis so he could go deeper, and she was thrusting up to meet him.  He pounded into her.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck.” He muttered with each thrust.  She could feel her abdomen tightening readying for another orgasm as he began to lose his rhythm.  Suddenly her muscles clamped down on him and they both cried each others names as they came.  He rolled slightly to the side taking her with him and holding her close. He was kissing the side of her face and stroking her hair.

“Are you all right, Kathryn? I didn’t hurt you, did I?”  He was concerned.  He’d lost control towards the end.  She wasn’t a big woman, and he wasn’t small.

“I’m fine, my love.  Better than fine.  That was amazing.  It’s been a bit of a dry spell for me for a while, but I swear that’s the best sex I’ve ever had.  God, I’ve missed it.”  She turned to him and caressed the side of his face.  “I’ve missed you too.  More than you’ll ever know.”  A tear slid down her cheek and she wiped it away, annoyed with herself for becoming so emotional.

Today had been something of a roller coaster ride in the emotional sense, but they were here now and she wasn’t going to let anything or anyone come between them.

He pulled a throw from the couch and covered them to keep them warm. Chakotay was running his fingers through her hair and dropping sweet kisses on her face. All of a sudden he sat up.

“Oh shit.  What about Tom?”

Kathryn looked surprised for a moment and then burst out laughing.

“Well, if he’s still here, he’s being astonishingly discreet for Tom Paris.  He’s most likely gone home to get the family and anyone else he can find to bring back here and catch us.  He’s probably sorry he allowed the betting pool to dry up.  He could’ve made a killing tonight.”

“You knew about that?”

“There wasn’t much that happened on that ship that I didn’t know about. Most information filters to the top eventually and I had my eyes and ears amongst the crew.  I even knew about Jenny Delaney’s adventure with the three well endowed Lotharios from engineering, and it wasn’t even the Doctor who told me. Mind you, it took me a while to work out how they managed that, but I did notice she ate standing up for a few days afterwards.”

He was looking at her, astonished at her acceptance of what was a sexual exploit of Olympian proportions.  The Doctor had a lot of repair work to do on all four participants. The whole episode became folklore amongst the lower decks.

“Is this your house, Chakotay?” He blinked at the abrupt change of subject.

“No.  It’s just a rented place until we could find somewhere more permanent. Why?”

“Well, as wonderful as this has been, I don’t feel like spending all night here on the floor.  My old bones won’t take it.”  She sat up a little and looked at him.  “Would you come home with me?  I’d like you to stay.  If you want a place of your own, we can look for something close by, but tonight I want you in my bed.”

He smiled.  She was nothing if not forthright.

“Kathryn, there’s no place I’d rather be, and if there’s enough room, I’d love to stay with you.  It’s not like it’s the first time we’ve lived together.  Let’s go and have a quick shower and I’ll throw some things together and we can leave.”

She gave him a big beaming smile.

“Show me the way, Commander.”  She clambered to her feet and started walking towards the doorway totally naked.  She turned around to see what was keeping him.

He was staring at her, astonished and delighted at her earthiness.  Here was a woman completely at home with her body and sexuality.  He shouldn’t have been surprised.  It was classic Janeway.  He jumped up from the floor and grabbed her around the waist.

“I’ll wash your back, shall I?”  He was running his hand up and down the soft skin of her back.

“You can wash any parts of me you want, as long as I can return the favour.”

Spirits, he was falling even more in love with this Kathryn.  This one who spoke her mind and loved him with abandon.  He had been in such despair a few hours ago when Seven had told him what she’d done.  Then she’d removed the emotional blocks that fettered his emotions since the Scorpion incident and he was hit with the realisation of all that he’d lost.

He’d been devastated and spent an hour pacing around his house trying to work out what to do and how to find Kathryn, when lo’ and behold she turned up at his door.  He couldn’t believe it.  At first he thought he was hallucinating; that Seven’s brainwashing had left him deranged in some way.

However, Tom Paris’s presence and inane comments soon put pay to that theory. All that had happened since that moment had been like a dream come true.  He was now, without a doubt, the happiest man alive.

Their shower took a little longer than they’d planned. They became somewhat sidetracked about half way through.  He was completely besotted and she in turn was an astonishingly passionate and generous lover.  It astounded him that he’d known her for more than seven years and had never had an inkling that she was so confident and unashamedly abandoned with her love making.

Kathryn had ‘washed’ him from head to toe and he’d been putty in her hands.  He’d returned the favour and when they were both teetering on the brink, she’d turned her back to him.  It took him a moment to understand what she was asking.  When he realised what she wanted, he almost came without even touching her.  He had taken her from behind, standing in the shower cubicle, with her leaning against the wall. It excited him just thinking about it.  She’d urged him on as he held her around her waist and pounded into her.  He would never forget the overpowering feeling of hunger and rapture he’d felt as she’d howled her release. He would never be able to get enough of her.  She staggered him and he was completely, irrevocably and totally in love and lust with this woman.

They were now dressed and she’d helped him pack his belongings, ready to be transported to her home.  The rest of his things would be dealt with later.  He quietly looked around this room, the room where he and Seven – Annika – had lived and loved or so he thought.  But he knew that what he felt for her was a pale shadow of his feelings for the strong and heady woman who stood before him.  All was right in his world.  His destiny had been fulfilled and he would love this woman, his Kathryn, until he died.

She turned to him and smiled. Taking his hand, they walked out the door.  At the top of the steps, she looked at him and squeezed his hand.

“Let’s go home, Chakotay.”  He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and held her close.

Side by side, they walked down the steps and into the night.

Fin


End file.
